


Valkyrie of the Paintball Range

by NoLifePoints (Vesperbat)



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: Gen, Kaiba Land, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-08
Updated: 2017-07-08
Packaged: 2018-11-29 13:37:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 848
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11442009
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vesperbat/pseuds/NoLifePoints
Summary: Jounouchi warns Kaiba not to play paintball with Anzu. He doesn't listen.(Note: I tagged Kaiba/Jou as it is present in the fic, but this is mostly gen-focused.)





	Valkyrie of the Paintball Range

Jounouchi grasped Kaiba’s shoulders. “Listen. This is important.Don’t.Play paintball. With Anzu.”

Kaiba narrowed his eyes and removed Jounouchi’s hands from his person. “First, it’s a moot point. I don’t care about paintball. Second, I doubt Mazaki would appreciate your ‘chivalry.’"

Jounouchi stared at him and dissolved into laughter. “Oh man. You think I’m trying to protect  _he_ r…”

It was Kaiba’s turn to stare. “Are you not?”

“Hell, no. Believe it or not, I’m looking out for you.” Jounouchi struggled to regain his composure, sides aching.

Kaiba’s mouth twitched. “Me.”

“You.” 

Kaiba turned, watching the group of friends approach Kaibaland’s new paintball range. Everyone else lagged behind Anzu, who seemed to be in high spirits. “Exactly what are you suggesting?” he asked.

“I’m not suggesting anything,” said Jounouchi, eye glinting. “I’m telling. She’ll crush you. I didn’t wanna say that up front, because I knew you’d just do it anyway…”

“You’re saying… I  _can’t_  win.”

“No way.”

Kaiba wrinkled his brows. “Ridiculous.”

“I guess it doesn’t matter.” Jounouchi grinned. “Since you’re not gonna play, you’ll never have to know just how badly you’d lose.”

Kaiba looked at Jounouchi as if he had just crawled out of the gutter. He lasted a whole two minutes before catching up with the others.

“Kaiba!” Anzu said, smiling. “We didn’t know you guys got a paintball range.”

“Yeah,” said Yuugi, no trace of his usual enthusiasm. “We had no idea.” He and Bakura marched as if they were attending their own funeral. Honda, on the other hand, held his head high, channeling the solemn grace of a doomed soldier.

“Up for a game?” Anzu asked, her excitement grinding against the mood of the group.

“If you’re challenging me, of course I won’t say no. Prepare yourself.”

Yuugi’s head snapped in Kaiba’s direction, his large eyes widening even further. Kaiba smiled at him and asked, “What’s the matter, Yuugi? Worried about further competition? Going to back down?”

“N-no…” He looked at his feet.

Jounouchi arrived, never quickening his step. He glanced between Anzu and Kaiba. “So I guess you’re all playing, then? Great. Have fun.”

Kaiba grasped Jounouchi’s shoulder. “You play, too.”

“Yeah!” said Anzu. “The more the merrier! Come on, Jounouchi!”

“Yeah, Jounouchi. Play with us.” There was a hint of malice in Yuugi’s eyes. If they couldn’t dodge, Jounouchi couldn’t either. He was trapped.

When they hit the range, there was no mercy. Anzu was a valkyrie, darting gracefully through the foliage and enacting judgment over life and death. Bakura fell first, his sneak attempt thwarted by the snapping of a branch. Anzu spun on him, grinning wide. He stumbled backwards while Anzu landed all three eliminating shots in quick succession, splattering his KC-branded vest with bright pink paint. Honda charged her, whooping in tribute to the fallen, but quickly suffered the same fate. 

The exchange gave the others time to scatter. Yuugi shimmied up one of the small trees that had been transplanted onto the field and waited for Anzu to pass. When she did, he scrambled to fire but missed his mark. “Hi, Yuugi!” she called, blasting him on the leg. He returned fire, grazing her arm with yellow this time, and hit the ground running. Alas, Yuugi’s small legs were no match for Anzu’s. Two more shots struck him squarely on the back.

Just as Yuugi stopped, Jounouchi came crashing from the foliage, dashing across the path and squeezing a shot in Anzu’s direction. She yelped as it collided with her chest, marking her in crimson. Two of three shots, but she wasn’t down yet. Narrowing her eyes, she yelled, “I’m gonna find you, Jounouchi!”

Panting, Jounouchi kept going, eyes roving for enough cover to hide him. He sprinted toward a large bush and nearly tripped over Kaiba. “Woah-”

“Quiet,” Kaiba hissed, grabbing his arm and pulling him downward. “Her last location?”

“Main path, but she’s gotta be coming by now,” Jounouchi whispered back.

“You guys,” called a distant, sing-song voice. “I know you’re out here!” 

“Shit. What are we going to do? Hey, maybe we could work together. Jump her from two sides, or-”

Kaiba leaned over and kissed him. Jounouchi’s eyes went wide, and he sat there, stunned, while Kaiba stood and lowered his gun. Three close-range shots ripped him from his reverie, and he stared at the blue paint soaking his armor. “You- bastard!”

“You’d only slow me down.” Kaiba walked on, making no attempt to hide, until he was out of Jounouchi’s sight. Still, he could hear them.

“Anzu. No more games. We draw on the count of three.”

“Why not? Let’s count together!”

“One… two…”

The last number was obscured by a volley of shots. After that, silence. Jounouchi waited, heart pounding, until Kaiba stumbled through the brush, eyes hollow. It was impossible to tell how many times he had been shot. All the paint blurred together.

“She…”

For Kaiba’s sake, Jounouchi held back the grin threatening to explode onto his face. He stood, somber, and patted Kaiba’s arm. “I told you, buddy. I told you. Don’t play paintball with Anzu.”


End file.
